It is well known in the art that the rotary engine and related rotary machines offer significant advantages over the reciprocating piston machines. Reduced vibration from reversing inertia forces due to the fact that the piston is revolving rather than reciprocating to turn the rotorshaft, reduced weight due to fewer moving parts, increased power due to the non-reciprocating action of the rotor and piston, decreased fuel consumption and reduced emission pollutants are a few such advantages.
However, one of the problems encountered with utilizing the rotary engine has been the difficulty in providing a satisfactory seal between the rotor and the engine housing. Because of the rotary motion of the engine, significant centrifugal forces are developed on the seals which must be overcome in order to develop maximum rotary engine efficiency. In addition, excessive wear is caused on the engine housing unless some method of overcoming the centrifugal forces is developed and a method provided to prevent seal systems from catching on potential places of interference in the surfaces against which the seal systems operate.
Significant problems are developed with lubricating oil flow to the rotor tip seals at the various operating rpm's. When all passages are correctly spaced and sized for idle and low rpm operations, excessive oil tends to be delivered at higher rpm's which tends to leak into the working section and cause excessive emissions of pollutants from the engine.